www.BeachandBayPress.com | Thursday, September 15, 2011 WHAT’S INSIDE: • The Sand Pit 5K • RT’s Longboard Grill will challenge is a great place to competitors in catch the Sept. 18 Mission Beach on Chargers/Patriots Sept. 17, Page 3 showdown, Page 8 • Live music roundup, Page 4 • The highly popular thunderboats of • The annual Pacific Beach Restaurant Bayfair San Diego will throttle up their power and speed Walk takes place around Mission Sept. 20 to tempt Bay for three your tummy afforddays, Page 10 ably, Page 5
PACIFIC NISSAN “Highway 5 on Mission Bay Drive” www.PacificNissan.com
(858) 581-3200 • 4433 Mission Bay Drive, Pacific Beach
PB planners recommend conditional-use permits for new alcohol licenses Divisive idea may not win support of councilman BY LEE CORNELL | BEACH & BAY PRESS
Mammoth power failure plunges the region into surreal darkness The massive power outage of Sept. 8 that spread its tentacles from Orange County to northern Mexico and east to Yuma, Ariz., was one for the history books. Neighbors who never before talked were introduced to one another outside in the darkness and families discovered creative new activities by candlelight or flashlight indoors. Here, Beach & Bay Press photographer Don Balch captures the striking difference from the same vantage point on Pacifica Drive looking south over Pacific Beach, Mission Bay and Clairemont during and after the outage. In the top photo, the main light source during the outage at 11 p.m. is along Interstate 5 and from the University of San Diego on the hill. The same view, taken at 11 p.m. four days later, shows the normal lighted landscape. No significant incidents were reported as a result of the blackout.
BY LEE CORNELL | BEACH & BAY PRESS
BY KEITH ANTIGIOVANNI | BEACH & BAY PRESS
The Police and Emergency Services Appreciation Night (PAESAN) event will honor local heroes on Wednesday, Sept. 28 at the North Crown Point Shores Rotary Pavilion. Courtesy photo
raffle, which includes massages, gift baskets and other giveaways,” said PBTC communications chairwoman and PAESAN Committee member Susan Lowary.
SEE PERMITS, Page 6
Pageantry, vibrancy of Brazilian festival returns to PB on Sunday
PAESAN emergency-services awards to recognize local heroes The Pacific Beach Town Council (PBTC), along with the Old Mission Bay Athletic Club (OMBAC), the Pacific Beach Rotary Club and the Pacific Beach Woman’s Club will host the 31st annual Police and Emergency Services Appreciation Night (PAESAN) on Wednesday Sept. 28 to honor local heroes and standouts in a 5 p.m. gala. The PAESAN event will be held at the North Crown Point Shores Rotary Pavilion and is an annual community event to recognize exemplary members of the police, fire/rescue, lifeguard and the parks departments who service the Pacific Beach area. The cost of the event is $5, which includes a barbeque dinner, a raffle, children’s activities like face painting, a jumpie and more. “Local businesses are sponsoring the
After a fiery forum drawing sharp emotions on both sides of the issue, the Pacific Beach Planning Board (PBPB) voted 11-5 with one abstention Aug. 31 to recommend that the City Council adopt a conditional-use permit (CUP) policy for new restaurants and bars seeking alcohol licenses in Pacific Beach. “What we have now is not working,” said Pacific Beach Planning Board member Scott Chipman. “Crime rates in our central business district are extremely high, especially alcohol-related crime.” Chipman was among those voting in favor of recommending CUPs to City Council. It is not clear when the matter will
formally come before the council, and it appears Kevin Faulconer, the councilman who represents Pacific Beach, may not entirely be on board with the PBPB’s recommendation. The planning board’s vote came on the heels of a 58-page report released by the planning board’s Alcohol Review Committee, which found a substantial increase in alcohol-related crimes in Pacific Beach in recent years. However, some believe the committee did not take into account all of possible negative economic impacts a CUP could potentially have for local businesses. “In the report they put together, they used statistics from 2008,” said Eric Lingenfelder, who owns Tavern At The Beach and Brewley’s Pint. “The report is
This year’s event will include a focus on a special fundraising program to provide bicycle lighting and siren sysSEE PAESAN, Page 6
Brazilian Day San Diego is set to hit the streets of downtown Pacific Beach on Sunday, Sept 18. The always colorful and vibrant celebration has been steadily growing since its inception four years ago and now prides itself as being “the biggest Brazilian Day on the West Coast.” “I think the vibe San Diego carries brings a lot of Brazilians to the city,” said events director Paulo Batuta. “Everyone compares San Diego to Rio de Janeiro with all of the beaches, and the climate makes San Diego special to us.” The event will once again take place on Garnet Avenue between Everts Street and Mission Boulevard beginning at 11 a.m. and running through 7 p.m. The beach lifestyle of San Diego has been attracting Brazilians for a long time, so it makes perfect sense to celebrate Brazilian Day in Pacific Beach, Batuta said. “In Pacific Beach, we have a big number of Brazilians who live in the area,” Batuta said. “This area is a really wellknown area for a big Brazilian population. PB is known as a favorite area for
A dancer demonstrates traditional dance moves in full costume during a previous Brazilian Day San Diego event in the heart of Photo by Paul Hansen I Beach & Bay Press Pacific Beach.
Brazilians to go, hang out and meet up. Some of us call it our ‘Little Brazil.’” For a day, the sights and sounds of downtown Pacific Beach will be filled SEE BRAZIL, Page 6